Harry Reid - Bridge Earmark

Summary

Senator Reid owns a great deal of land near Bullhead City, Arizona.  In 2006, he sponsored an earmark to provide $18 million in funding to build a bridge to connect Laughlin, Nevada and Bullhead City, Arizona.  This bridge is near the property he owns and will undoubtedly increase the value of that land.

Value of the land

More than 20 years ago, Senator Reid purchased 100 acres of land roughly 3-5 miles from Bullhead City, Arizona for a price of $150,000.  His longtime friend, Clair Haycock bought the remaining 60 acres for $90,000.  In the early 1990's Californians bought the property from the two for $1.3-million.  Those investors defaulted and the land was returned to Senator Reid.  In early 2002, Haycock sold out to Reid for $10,000, or about $166 an acre.  At the time, the Mohave County assessor valued the entire parcel at $339,620, or more than $2,000 an acre.

In 2006, after the announcement of the bridge, a businessman bought land near Senator Reid's at a rate of $6,396 an acre.  From 2001 to 2005, Reid disclosed that the property was worth $500,000 to 1,000,000. Then, in 2006, after the earmark for the bridge went into effect, he indicated that the entire 160-acre property was worth only $150,000. In 2007 and 2008, Reid valued the asset at $250,000 to 500,000.

Need for the bridge

The proposed bridge between Laughlin and Bullhead City was not on the priority list sent to local members of Congress by either the Nevada or Arizona transportation agencies.

But beginning in 2003, local supporters of the bridge — which would be the second span connecting the two towns — found a receptive audience when they approached some members of the Nevada and Arizona congressional delegations. Civic leaders argued that an additional bridge was needed because traffic on the existing connector bridge, on the northern edge of Bullhead City, had become overwhelming.

Laughlin consists mainly of casinos and hotels, and has little housing or shopping. Most of the casino workers live across the river in Bullhead City, which also has shopping and a hospital. Elected officials say both communities would benefit from a second bridge.

Earmark

Acting on a request from the town of Laughlin, Reid, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee's transportation subcommittee, in 2003 secured $500,000 for preliminary studies.

Initially, Rep. Jon Porter (R-Nev.), supported by Rep. Trent Franks (R-Ariz.), got $2 million for the bridge inserted into the House version of the transportation bill.

By the time Congress approved the $286-billion transportation bill, $18 million more in bridge funding had been added. Reid took credit in a news release for securing money that would kick the project into high gear. The bridge, still in the planning stages, is projected to cost $30 million to $40 million.

Arizona's two Republican senators voted against the entire transportation bill as pure pork.

Increase to Reid's Property

City and county officials say that land values have been rising in Bullhead City as developers and speculators discover the area.

"Once they build a bridge, values will go up," said Frank Capotosto of the Mohave County assessor's office.

"A new bridge will increase value because there would be better circulation, " said Pawan Agrawal, public works director and city engineer for Bullhead City.

Steve Ellis, vice president of Taxpayers for Common Sense, a nonpartisan watchdog that tracks congressional spending said, "Unwittingly, the taxpayer may have helped inflate the value" of Reid's property.

References

[1] Website: Los Angeles Times Article: Will the Pork stop here? Author: Chuck Neubauer and Tom Hamburger Accessed on: 06/15/2010

[2] Website: Smart Girl Politics Article: Harry Reid and "His" Bridge...Excerpt from Dick Morris New Book Out Today.... Author: bbforbis Accessed on: 06/15/2010

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